nuts

At a gathering just before Thanksgiving, we were discussing everyone’s favorite pie. My husband brought up his love of cheesecake and cannoli, rather than the typical turkey day offerings. The table threw down a challenge that I readily accepted – create a cannoli cheesecake.

While a quick search on the internet brings up a few recipes, most include cream cheese. My goal was to create a ricotta cheese only cheesecake, to keep it as close to tasting like a cannoli as possible. I decided to start with a recipe from Buddy Valastro for a traditional ricotta cheesecake. I modified the recipe to include chocolate chips and a crust made of pistachios and Biscoff cookies.

Using only ricotta results in a lighter texture, which was a nice change from a New York style cheesecake. While the cake isn’t as sweet as cannoli filling, it was still a hit!

If a large cheesecake is too much of a commitment, you can always try my Chocolate Cherry Cannoli Cups instead – either will make for happy guests.

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat to 400ºF. Butter a 9-inch spring form panand place on a baking sheet.

Crush the cookies and the pistachios until fine, then mix with the melted butter. Press into the bottom of the spring form pan. Bake for 5 minutes; remove from the oven and let cool.

In a stand mixer fit with the paddle, beat the ricotta cheese, sugar, egg yolks, lemon zest, and vanilla until very smooth.

Put the egg whites in a separate mixer bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Fold the whites by thirds into the cheese mixture, then stir in the chocolate chips. Pour mixture into the pan over the crust and level it.

Put the cake in the oven and immediately lower the heat to 350ºF. Bake until the cake has risen higher on the sides than in the middle and is set but jiggling in the center, 1 hour, 10 minutes. Turn off the oven and prop the door open (using a prop such as a wine cork or large wooden clothes pin; Be careful not to let it fall into the oven). Let the cake cool completely in the oven for 1 hour, then cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 3 hours or overnight before removing the spring form sides. Slice and serve.

I love butternut, but I despise peeling and chopping it. That is why I joyfully bought pre-peeled and chopped butternut squash from Costco in a handy 2 pound tub. Prep time was instantly reduced by 85% and I could focus on how I wanted to flavor my dish, rather than how to safely peel the squash. I decided on a simply roasting the squash, while adding a ton of flavor with a dose of garam masala (which is a blend of spices that is typically found in Indian cuisine).

To roast the squash, I preheated the pans to set a sear on the underside of the butternut, which is a tip from Stuart O’Keeffe (as published in Optimum Wellness Summer 2017 edition). Once the squash was in the oven, I just had to wait for 40 minutes or so for it to get tender and a nice golden brown color. In addition to the amazing carmelization of the outside, the roasting brings out the natural sweetness of the butternut squash. In fact, you would swear you are eating a sweet potato casserole without all of the added sugar.

Preheat oven to 425 °F. Place two roasting sheets (15 x 18) in oven to warm. In a large bowl, toss together the squash, oil, and garam marsala, stirring to coat the squash evenly. Carefully remove the roasting sheets from the oven and divide the squash between the two sheets, spreading out the squash on the sheets. Place the sheets in the oven and roast the squash for 40-45 minutes or until beginning to brown on the outside. Transfer to a bowl and stir in pine nuts and oregano. Serve.

If given a choice, my children would eat peanut butter every day for breakfast. On top of the great taste, they enjoy getting to make breakfast on their own (if you can really call smothering a piece of bread with peanut butter cooking). Needless to say, we dissuade them with other, more filling choices.

This week I wanted to make something that was just as easy to serve, yet kept them begging to eat. I made Loaded Peanut Butter Granola Bars. In addition to the peanut butter, the bars are filled with steel cut oats, puffed corn cereal, nuts, dates, and chia seeds. The kids LOVED them, and I am thrilled they get fiber, protein, and omega-3s. A family win!

In a large bowl, mix together the oats, cereal, dates, pepitas, and chia seeds. In a small sauce pan, combine the peanut butter, honey, and oil. Heat over medium heat until melted. Pour over the oat mixture and stir to coat. Cover the bottom and sides of a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with foil and cover with cooking spray, then spread in the granola mixture and press firmly. Cover with a sheet of waxed paper and cover with another baking pan and weigh down. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours than cut into bars.

Note: I used the recipe for Chocolate Monkey Bars from BH&G as a starting point for the peanut butter binder and wet to dry ratio. The possibility of mix-ins are endless.

At family gatherings, my grandfather would always set out a bowl of cashews for a snack. My guess is that this tradition started my love of cashews, which is why I tend to be the offender who will steal them from the mixed nuts if given the chance.

I use them periodically in my cooking, such as my Cashew Chicken Stuffed Avocados and Asian Salad, but this week I wanted to make a candied cashew for snacking and to serve at this year’s holiday gatherings. I kept them simple – a mixture of maple syrup, oil, and allspice was all I needed to make a sugary glaze for the nuts.

After just 15 minutes of baking the Maple Cashews were ready for snacking. I have enjoyed this treat throughout the week and I can’t wait to share them with my family.

Heat oven to 350°F. In a small bowl, stir together the maple syrup, olive oil, and allspice. Place the cashews in a medium sized bowl, pour over the maple syrup mixture, and stir to coat. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray, then spread the cashews over the sheet. Place in the oven for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from the oven and cool completely; store in a cool, dry container.

For picnics or other summer gatherings, I find an ice box cake is an easy treat to make. The work is done ahead of time, and they tend to be crowd pleasers. For my latest ice box cake I wanted to make a take on an American classic – the Apple Pie.

This Apple Pie Ice Box Cake layers apple snaps or vanilla wafers with spiced vanilla pudding, and apple pie filling. The final touch is a drizzle or caramel sauce and peanuts, which adds a teaser of candy apple to the cake. It should be no surprise that my kids loved this dessert. A serving or two may have even disappeared at breakfast time!

Apple Pie Ice Box Cake

12 ounces apple snap cookies or vanilla wafer cookies

2 cups vanilla pudding

1 teaspoon apple pie spice

21 ounce can apple pie filing

¼ cup caramel sauce

¼ cup dry roasted peanuts

Line to bottom of an 8 inch x 8 inch dish with 1/3 or the cookies. Stir the apple pie spice into the vanilla pudding, and then evenly pour 1 cup of the pudding over the cookies. Next evenly pour half of the apple pie filling over the pudding. Add another layer of cookies on top and repeat the pudding and apple pie filling layers. Place a third and final layer of cookies on top, and refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours. Before serving, drizzle the caramel sauce on top and sprinkle with the peanuts. Cut and serve.

‘Tis the season for baking, so why not combine it with a cooking contest? This week’s recipe was inspired by the Simply Sesame Blogger Recipe Challenge hosted by Simply Sesame. Simply Sesame sent me their three different flavors of Simply Sesame spread: Pistachio-Cardamom, Vanilla-Almond, and plain. I instantly gravitated toward the subtly exotic pistachio-cardamom (though I enjoy all of the creamy flavors) to make my Pistachio Chai Tiramisu. The other great thing about these spreads is that they are gluten free and peanut free.

Tiramisu is an Italian dessert which typically consists of ladyfinger cookies soaked in a coffee-rum mixture and layered with a mascarpone cream layer then dusted with chocolate.For this recipe I decided to play on the cardamom flavor of the Simply Sesame spread and soaked the ladyfingers in a chai-brandy mixture. Next, I folded the pistachio-cardamom simply sesame spread into the mascarpone (along with a bit of powdered sugar) to create my creamy layer.Finally, the top of the tiramisu was decorated with a bit of caramel syrup and crushed pistachios.The result was a beautifully presented tiramisu unlike any you have tasted.

It received a thumbs up from my hubby who is a tiramisu aficionado. I hope you enjoy it just as much!

Remove the tea bag from the water and place the tea in a shallow bowl along with the remaining 2 tablespoons of brandy and stir to combine.Dunk the ladyfingers in the chai tea mixture one at a time, 2-3 seconds per side and place in the bottom of an 8 x 8 dish or trifle dish (you should only need half of the cookies to cover the bottom of the dish).Spread half of the mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers, then add another layer of the soaked ladyfingers on top. Spread the remaining mascarpone mixture over the top to coat the cookies (you should have two layers of cookies and two mascarpone layers). Refrigerate until ready to serve, at least 2 hours.Just before serving, drizzle the top of the tiramisu with the caramel syrup and then evenly cover the top with the crushed pistachios.Cut and serve the pistachio chai tiramisu.

In April I wrote about coming up with creative ways to eat broccoli, setting a goal of discussing seven different recipes. Today I want to discuss four more ideas to bring the tally to seven.

First up is my most creative twist – Fusilli Primavera with Broccoli Pesto. I subbed in steamed broccoli for basil to create a unique and tasty pesto. It worked great as the sauce for a primavera style pasta that was stocked full of baby tomatoes and summer squash.

The next kitchen experiment used a grocery store find I have been waiting to try – sriracha powder. Blanched broccoli and honey roasted peanuts get a kick from a light sriracha mayonnaise dressing.

Third up is flash fried broccoli. I used my recipe for flash fried Brussels sprouts, though you only need to fry the broccoli for 2-3 minutes to get a crisp exterior. This was just as much of a hit with my husband as the fried Brussels sprouts.

As the seventh and final way to eat broccoli in a week I’d be remise if I didn’t go with the classic crudité plate. My dipping sauce these days for fresh broccoli is a poblano ranch dressing.

Phew! Seven different ways to eat broccoli in a week. Now you are either sick of broccoli or an addict.

Cook fusilli according to package directions. Meanwhile, steam the broccoli for 5 minutes. Add the steamed broccoli to a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add the pine nuts and process until mixed, then with the food processor running, pour in the oil. Scrap down the sides of the food processor if necessary, and blend until smooth. Remove the bowl from the food processor and stir in the pecorino, salt, and pepper. One the pasta is done, drain and place in a large bowl. Pour the pesto over the pasta and stir to coat. Add in the tomatoes and the squash, stir until combined and serve.

Blanch the broccoli, drain and place in a large bowl. In a separate small bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and sriracha powder until a smooth sauce is formed. Pour over the broccoli, add the peanuts and stir to coat. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

I’ve mentioned before that I love when I can use a premixed spice blend as a time saving measuring in my cooking. That is one of the reasons I enjoy the Healthy Solutions Spice Blends Blogger Challenge. I get my creative cooking thinking cap on and experiment with a new spice mix, with the goal of creating a recipe that blends healthy eating with tasting great while upholding the low salt and low sugar goal of the spices. Challenge accepted!

Out of the 16 different blends offered by Healthy Solutions Spice Blends, I chose to use the Encrusted Haddock (which is a mix of garlic, celery, onion, and dried cranberry) since I felt it could be used in a wide variety of dishes. While I think this spice mix would be great for both chicken or seafood, I chose to make a meatless dish as my entry – Spinach and Goat Cheese Steel Cut Oat Risotto.

As compared to an Arborio rice risotto, steel cut oats are a much healthier choice. Steel cut oats pack a fair amount of protein, fiber, and iron per serving, making them a great meat substitute for a meal. I was also able to keep my Spinach and Goat Cheese Steel Cut Oat Risotto true to the theme of low salt/low sugar by using an unsalted boxed stock. When I surveyed the grocery store most of the unsalted box stocks had only 40-70 mg of sodium per 1 cup, which is well below the cut-off for low sodium items. Similarly, goat cheese falls into the category of low sodium. See – eating healthy CAN still taste great.

Much like an Arborio rice risotto, I ladled stock into the steel cut oats, letting the stock get absorbed before the next addition. Once all the liquid had been absorbed and the oats were tender-chewy, I stirred in the fresh spinach, Encrusted Haddock seasoning, red onions, pecans, and goat cheese. Simple, yet a healthy, impressive, and satisfying dish. Enjoy!

Heat the chicken stock in a medium sized sauce pan and keep warm. Add the steel cut oats to a large sauce pan (~ 3 quarts), add one ladle of the warm stock and heat over medium heat. As the stock is absorbed, add another ladle of stock, stirring frequently. Repeat until all the stock has been added to the oats, adding the lemon juice with the last bit of stock. Once the stock and lemon juice have been absorbed and the oats are tender and chewy (about 20-30 minutes), remove from the heat. Next, stir in the spinach until wilted, about 1 minute. Then stir in the lemon zest, pecans, red onion, Healthy Solutions encrusted haddock seasoning, and goat cheese until well mixed. Transfer the Spinach and Goat Cheese Risotto to two serving bowls, sprinkle with parsley and additional lemon zest if desired, and serve.

“Chestnuts roasting over an open fire . . .” croons a popular Christmas tune. Roasting chestnuts is often associated with the holiday season, however I have found the task tedious and more work than it is worth to taste the tender treat. That is why I was thrilled to find the whole roasted and peeled chestnuts from Blanchard & Blanchard at the grocery store.

Chestnuts, unlike other nuts, are actually low in fat while still providing a good source of both fiber and protein. They are also a good source of vitamin C and provide almost as much potassium as a banana in ½ cup of chestnuts. One of the ways I have enjoyed them this year is in my Christmas Chestnut Salad.

In my opinion a celebratory holiday dinner isn’t complete without a festive starter salad. For this recipe I started with a blend of arugula and endive, dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette, and then topped the greenery with blue cheese, dried cranberries, chestnuts and golden beets.

The resulting Christmas Chestnut Salad is a vibrant starter with well-balanced flavors. I also love that it sneaks in a serving of in-season root vegetable!

Make the dressing by pouring the oil, vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small container and mixing until well blended; set aside. Place the arugula, endive, and blue cheese in a large bowl, then pour the salad dressing over the salad mixture and stir to coat and mix the leaves. Divide the dressed leaves between four salad plates. Evenly top the four plates with the dried cranberries, chestnuts, and sliced beets. Serve immediately (makes 4 servings).

Ever since I can remember my family has been making these spiced pecans for Christmas. The recipe is a slight adaptation of the one found in the Joy of Cooking cookbook. The most notable change is that we have always made it with four-times the amount of nuts as compared to the original recipe. I have also added cloves and tweaked the ginger and nutmeg quantities since a 1/3 teaspoon measuring spoon isn’t common.

Oh, and we have simplified the prep – instead of dropping the nuts one-by-one into the sugar mixture, we have found the dump-and-coat method to work just fine.

Before baking the Spiced Pecans

After baking the Spiced Pecans

The hardest part is waiting for the sugar coating to dry in the oven. The nuts are baked at a low temperature to dry out the egg whites, to create the crunchy & spicy coating. One bonus of this baking process is that your house will be perfumed with the smells of the holidays, more so than any candle could provide.

These spiced pecans last for quite a while, making them a good early baking item. They are also versatile too – they can be served as a dessert, sprinkled on a salad, or poured into a pretty container and given as a gift. Alternatively, you can eat them just-because any time of the day, like my family. It’s a great way to build your holiday spirit!

Preheat oven to 250 °F. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate large bowl, mix together the egg white and water, then add the pecans and stir to coat. Once the pecans have been coated with the egg whites, sprinkle on the sugar mixture and stir until the pecans are evenly coated. Spread the pecans onto a large baking sheet and bake for ~1 hour, stirring twice, or until dry. Cool and store in a tightly covered container.

In my opinion, it is never too early to start experimenting with recipes for holiday treats and goodies. When time allows, I like to prepare a spread of cookies and invite all my friends over for a cookie & tea party a few weeks before Christmas. With two little ones I haven’t been able to throw my party the last few years, but maybe if I start now with ideas and freezer cookies I can pull it off this year.

This week I decided to tinker with my rum raisin fudge, switching out the rum extract for maple and the raisins for toasted hazelnuts to make this Maple Hazelnut Fudge. It is just as simple, and absolutely decadent.

In fact, cutting the fudge into 1 1/2 inch squares is more than enough to get a heavy dose of chocolate.

The flavor combo in the Maple Hazelnut Fudge is perfect for fall, and pairs perfectly with my favorite spice tea. This batch most certainly won’t make it to my party, but the recipe will make the list!

Place hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in the middle of the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until skins are blistered and nuts are fragrant. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and rub nuts in towel to partially remove loose skins; set aside.

Place butter in a microwave safe bowl. Place in microwave on high for 30-60 seconds until just melted. Stir in the chocolate and sweetened condensed milk. Place back in microwave and heat on high for 1-2 minutes longer, stirring every 30 seconds. Once chocolate is smooth, remove from the microwave and stir in toasted hazelnuts and maple flavoring, then pour into a parchment paper lined 8-inch by 8-inch dish.

Refrigerate until set, then cut into squares. Keep in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Icebox cakes are a great dessert showpiece, with often little to no baking or cooking. What they do require is time – time to let the layers meld together, for an ooey-gooey layered cake affect.

For a Labor Day picnic, I decided to whip up this Chocolate Turtle Icebox Cake. My sweet-tooth demanded that I bring a dessert, but both work and moving have been keeping me busy, leaving little time for more complicated recipes. I had all the ingredients I needed to make a decadent icebox cake – vanilla wafers, caramel sauce, and the necessary fixings for a quick chocolate pudding.

Did you know that whipping up homemade pudding is just as simple and quick as the boxed kind? I highly recommend that you try making the chocolate pudding from scratch, but you can use an instant pudding package if you prefer. Once the pudding is made, vanilla wafers, caramel sauce, pecans, pudding, and chocolate hardening sauce are poured in alternating layers into a springform pan. The icebox cake does all the work sitting in the refrigerator overnight – the cookies soak up moisture and become cake-like, and syrupy layers become more dense.

When I unveiled the cake at the picnic the other guests swarmed. Their content smiles told me that the Chocolate Turtle Icebox Cake was a hit. What a perfect treat for a picnic!

First make the chocolate pudding. In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt. Gradually add milk. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil and stir for 2 minutes, or until it thickens. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla and chill in the refrigerator. Once the chocolate pudding is cooled, prepare the cake. Lay 1/3 or the bag of vanilla wafers on the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan, then pour over ½ of the chocolate pudding to coat the cookies and evenly pour 1/3 of the caramel over pudding. Sprinkle with 1 ounce of the pecans, then repeat another layer of vanilla wafers, pudding, caramel, and pecans, in that order. Finally cover the top with the remainder of the vanilla wafers and then pour the hardening shell over the top. Refrigerate overnight before serving.

note: one 3.4 ounce package of instant pudding and 2 cups of milk can be used to substitute the first 6 ingredients. Follow package instructions to make the pudding.